Ments



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

P. P. BAILEY, F. BERNER, Jr. & W. L. LIGHT-FORD.

STAMP 'APFIXING MACHINE.

No. 536,995. Patented Apr. 9, 1895.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

P. P. BAILEY, P.IBERNER, Jr. & W. L. LIGHTFOR'D. STAMP AFFIXING MAGHINE.

No. 536,995. Patented Apr. 9, 1895.

26 gy 4 24 39 27 22 23 H 3 6 El I i UNITED STATES PAT NT QrFIcE.

FRANCIS P. BAILEY, FREDERICK BERNER, J R., AND WILLIAM L. LIGHTFORD, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, ASSIGNORS, BY DIRECT AND MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO SAID BAILEY AND THOMAS E. HIBBEN, OF SAME PLACE.

STAMP-AFFlXING MACHIN E.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 536,995, dated April 9, 1895. A Application filed May 28, 1894- Serial No. 512,609. (No model.)

.15 gle stroke of a plunger may operate to moisten the surface to which the stamp is to be applied; to feed a web of stamps forward the width of a stamp; to detach a single stamp from the web, and to press the gummed surzo face of the stamp against the moistened surface, all as hereinafter fully set forth.

The accompanying drawings illustrate our invention.

Figure 1 represents a side elevation. Fig. 25 2 represents an elevation of that side which is opposite to that shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 representsa central longitudinal section of the machine. Fig. 4 represents a plan, without the top cross-bar. j

In the drawings, 2, and 3, indicate two plates of metal which form the sides of. the machine frame. These sides are connected by crossbars, 4, 5, and 6. Secured to the inner sides of the plates 2 and 3, are vertical-ways, 7, 7, 3 5 between which the plunger, 8, is arranged to slide vertically. Plunger 8 is formed hollow, with a transverse mortise 9, in which are arranged, loosely, a pair of rods, 10 and 11, which project, at their ends, through slots, 12

40 and 13, formed in each of the side-plates. Rod 11 is held with yielding pressure toward one side of the plunger by light springs, 14, 14.

' The upper side of the plunger is provided with a rod, 15, to which is secured a handle,

5 16, and the plunger is held normally upward by means of a spiral spring, 17, surrounding the rod 15, and resting,- at its ends, between the upper surface of the cross-bar 5, and the under surface of the handle. Said spring is covered by telescoping tubes, 18 and 19, which are secured, respectively, to the cross-bar 5 and the handle 16.

Mounted in bearings formed in the sides of the main-frame, are a pair of feed-rollers, 20, and 21, and a stamp-reel, 22. Reel 22, and feed-roller 21, are mounted in slotted bearings and are held in position by springs 23, and 46, the purpose being to permitthe easy removal of said reel and feed-roll. Secured to the shaft of feed-roll 20 is aratchet-wheel, 24, and, loosely mounted on the shaft, is a lever, 25, carrying a pawl, 26, which engages the ratchetwheel.

Pivoted to one side ofthe frame is a bent lever, 27; one of the arms of said lever being arranged to extend across the slot 12, in the path of the rod 10, and the other arm being bent outwardand slotted at its lower end; said lever being held normally in position against the stop, 28, projecting from the side of the main-frame, by means of a spring 29, which is attached at one end to the lever, and

is secured at the other end to a fired point on.

the main-frame. Lever 27 is adjustably connected, by means of a link, 30, with the lever the arrangement being such that a greater or less movement may be imparted to the feed-roll 20, by a given swinging movement of the lever 27.

Mounted between the sides of the mainframe, at one end, is a water reservoir, 31. Said reservoir consists of a rectangular closed receptacle, formed preferably of sheet metal, and having, near one end, a perforated partition, 32, thus forming between said partition and the end of the reservoir a narrow compartment, 33, which is open at its under side, and is filled with an absorbent material, as sponge, said absorbent material projecting a short distance below the bottom of the reservoir so as to form a moistening brush, 34. The partition 32, is perforated near its upper edge only, so that water is supplied to the sponge, or brush only when thereservoir is tilted, as shown in the drawings. Said reservoir is provided, at its inner end, at the bottom,

with a pair of arms, 35, 35, which are turned outward at each end to form studs, 40, and 45, which project through slots 36 and 37, formed in the respective sides of the frame. Said slots throughout most of their length, are parallel with the lower edge of thesides, but are cam-shaped near one end, said end being raised so as to hold the reservoir in a tilted position, as shown in the drawings.

For the purpose of propelling the reservoir and its moistening brush along the surface to be moistened, a pair of lovers 3S and 39, are pivoted to opposite sides of the frame, near its top. The free ends of said levers are slotted so as to receive the outwardly proj ecting ends, 40, of the arms 35, and each lever is provided at its pivoted end with a pair of oppositely projecting radial arms, 41, and 42.

When the reservoir is at rest in its normal position, as shown in the drawings, the arms 41 of levers 3S and 39, project, respectively, partly across the slots 13, formed in the sides of the f ram e, in such a position that said arms will be engaged, when the plunger is forced downward, by the projecting ends of rod 11. The upper part of slots 13, 13, is curved in such a manner that, as the plunger is forced downward, rod 11 will be forced out of engagement with the arms 41 when the reservoir has been thrown forward the required distance.

Gross-bar 6 is formed hollow so as to permit the passage of one end of the web of stamps, 43, which is coiled upon the reel 22, and the inner edge of said cross-bar forms a cutting bar which is engaged by a shearing-knife, 44, which is secured to one side of the plunger.

The operation of our machine is as follows: One end of the web of stamps is passed between the feed-rollers 20 and 21, and through the cross-bar 6, until the end of the web is even with the inner edge of the cross-bar. The parts being in the position shown in the drawings, the machine is set upon the paper or envelope to be stamped, and the operator grasping the handle 16, forces the plunger downward. At the first movement of the plunger the projecting ends of rod 11 engage the arms 41 of levers 38 and 39, and a swinging movement is imparted to said levers, thus carrying the reservoir toward the feed-rolls; its movement being guided by the slots 36 and 37, so that the reservoir after leaving the inclined portions of the slot is held level and moves in a plane parallel to the surface of the envelope and the moistening brush 34 is drawn along the surface on which the stamp is to be placed. \Vhen the reservoir has been thrown forward the required distance, the arms 42 of the said levers, have been thrown upward and forward so as to extend across the upper parts of slots 12, 12, and into the path of the projecting ends of the rod 10; and rod 11 has passed out of engagement with the arms 41 and into the straight vertical portion of the slots 13. Rod 10 now engaging the arms 42, the movement of the levers is reversed by the further downward movement of the plunger, and the reservoir is quickly carried back to its normal position, the quick tilting of the reservoir at the completion of its stroke forcing the water contained therein through the perforations in partition 32,thusinsuring the thorough moistening of the brush 34. The plunger continuing its downward movement, the ends of rod 11 encounter the upper curved edge of lever 27, and impart a swinging movement to the lever, and, through the connecting parts, a rotary movement to the feed-roll 20, thus feeding the web of stamps forward the width of a stamp, which is thus brought directly be neath the plunger and over the moistened place on the envelope or paper, the gummed surface of the stamp being downward. The continued downward movement of the plunger brings knife 44 into engagement with the edge of crossbar 6, thus severing the stamp from the web, and the stamp is then pressed by the plunger upon the moistened surface of the paper. The handle being released, the plunger is raised by means of the spring 17, lever 27 is returned to its normal position by spring 29, and rod 11, being yieldingly held in position by the springs 14, overrides the projecting ends of arms 41, and returns to its normal position when the plunger reaches its highest point.

l/Ve claim as our invention 1. In a stamp-affixing machine, the combination of the side-plates each having a pair of vertical slots, the plunger arranged to slide in vertical ways between said side-plates, the pair of rods loosely mounted in said plunger and projecting through said slots in the side-plates, the pair of lovers pivoted to the side-plates, each of said levers being provided with a pair of oppositely projecting radial arms which are arranged to extend across said slots and are adapted to be engaged alternately by the projecting ends of the rods during the downward movement of the plunger, and the reservoir provided with amoistening brush and mounted between the side-plates and having arms which project through guiding slots formed in the side-plates and engage the free ends of said levers, all arranged to co-operate substantially as set forth, whereby a reciprocating movement is imparted to the reservoir by the downward movement of the plunger, for the purposeset forth.

2. In a stamp affixing machine, the combination of the main frame having slots 36, and 37, the closed reservoir having near one end an interior transverse partition perforated near its upper edge only, and forming together with one end of the reservoir a narrow compartment which is open at the bottom, a moistening brush consisting of a mass of absorbent material, as sponge, inserted in said the inclined portion of the slots, substantially narrow compartment and projecting below as and forthe purpose set forth.

the bottom of the reservoir, arms projecting FRANCIS P. BAILEY.

laterally from the reservoir and engaging the FREDERICK BERNER, J R. 5 slots, and means for propelling the reservoir WILLIAM L. LIGHTFORD.

backward and forward along the slots, sub- Witnesses:

stantialiy as set forth, the reservoir being H. P. HOOD,

tilted at one end of its path of movement by V. M. HOOD. 

